Moving On Smoke-free

Nobody wants to tell you how to run your life. Most of you know that smoking is bad for you; you’ve heard it before. Ultimately the fact is you will have to decide whether you are going to smoke or not. Some of you have already made the decision not to smoke; some of you may have made the opposite decision. In making a decision as important as this, you will want to gather as much information as you can and we can help. You may want to know that the younger someone is when they start smoking, the more likely he or she is to become a life–time smoker. Smoking is addictive. Over the last number of years tobacco companies have added 10% more of the addictive compound nicotine in hopes of getting people hooked faster. Now it can take only a few puffs to get someone hooked on cigarettes. That is one of the reasons why 8 out of 10 teenagers who try smoking will become regular smokers. That is why the Government of the Yukon sponsors a variety of initiatives. Check out the websites by using the links below and move towards making informed choices about your future health.

Tobacco smoke is made up mainly of tar (which builds up in your lungs), nicotine and carbon monoxide. It also contains other poisonous substances like cyanide, formaldehyde and ammonia.

Smokeless tobacco (chewing tobacco, snuff) is also very dangerous to our health. Smokeless tobacco users are more likely to develop cancer of the mouth, lip, tongue, gums, and throat. You are also more likely to develop dental problems such as cavities, tooth loss and gum disease.

Tobacco use causes many different kinds of cancer -- and not just lung cancer. Think mouth, throat, pancreas, bladder, kidney and cervix. Then there's respiratory and heart disease.

Young women who smoke and are taking birth control pills increase their chances for serious heart disease, stroke and high blood pressure.